After walking through the endless green forest, a boy with a Pikachu arrived at their destination, with a delicate girl following closely behind. However, the girl's state was not quite right. She was drenched in sweat and was breathing heavily, as if she had been through an intense workout.
"Huff..." Dawn took a deep breath. After following Ash for so long, she couldn't help but ask, "Ash, have we arrived yet? I can't take it anymore!" The girl held her skirt, found a relatively clean spot, and sat down on the ground, looking exhausted.
"We're here. The cave is right ahead," Ash said, pointing to a distant stone cave covered in moss.
"Ah, but I can't walk anymore!" Dawn said with a sweet smile, as she massaged her tired, trembling legs. "Why don't you carry me? Please?" She held out her hands, ready to be picked up.
"Honestly, what did you expect when you followed me in secret?" Ash complained half-heartedly before walking over to her. To her surprise, he once again picked her up by the waist.
"Hey! Wait! I meant for you to carry me on your back, you big dummy!" Because her hands were already outstretched, their hands crossed, and she was firmly held in place, so she just started hitting his back.
"Ugh, not... not this embarrassing position again!"
"Don't worry, there's no one out here in the middle of nowhere," he said, gently patting her skirt to reassure her. This was different from last time. This deep forest was rarely crossed by people, and on their way there, they didn't even see many wild Pokémon. He had used his Aura to direct Pikachu to defeat all the wild Pokémon in their path. No wild Pokémon would disturb them, and with Pikachu out of the way, neither of them would feel embarrassed.
"I... I can't with you!" Knowing that her small strength was no match for this "big monster," Dawn only put up a symbolic struggle before resting her chin on his shoulder. With the experience from last time, she calmed down immediately, letting her blushing face return to normal, trying not to give him any opportunity to mess with her.
As time passed, Dawn didn't feel any strange movements, which made her look at Ash's dark eyes with some confusion, only to find him looking back at her with a mischievous grin.
"What, are you thinking naughty thoughts? I'm a decent person!" he said. His hands were placed on her waist to keep her from falling, and he hadn't moved them since.
"Yeah, right, who would believe that?" she said with a look of disdain, wondering who had been touching her a few days ago.
Ash didn't mind her comment and just focused on the path ahead.
"???" Dawn was truly surprised that she didn't feel anything, and she looked at his serious face with confusion. He really wasn't thinking anything else, which was incredible! What Dawn didn't know was that Ash was focused on the upcoming battle with Suicune and had made up his mind not to have any distracting thoughts. If he did, he might get sidetracked.
"Dawn, I'm going in now!" When they got to the mouth of the cave, Ash said to the girl, who was afraid of the dark.
"Okay, Ash, be careful!" Dawn was no longer embarrassed and hugged him tightly. The cave was completely dark, and it made her tremble.
"Sigh, it's a shame that Pikachu doesn't know Flash," Ash said, feeling the weight of Pikachu on his head. With Flash, they could light up the entire cave.
"The Aura is with me!" To make sure Dawn wasn't scared, Ash closed his eyes and released his Aura, turning himself into a giant, glowing blue lightbulb.
Sensing the blue light, Dawn climbed off Ash's shoulder and opened her beautiful blue eyes, only to see him as a giant lightbulb.
"Wow, is this the superpower you used in the forest, Ash?" Dawn recalled the scene from the forest, and it was exactly the same. She hadn't asked before, but now she was full of questions.
"Yeah, this power is called Aura. It's mainly for sensing and can ignore the surrounding terrain," Ash patiently replied to the now energized Dawn. He then ignored her surprised gaze and walked deeper into the dark cave.
Soon, the light inside the cave was no longer dim, as if another opening was letting in light. But Ash's mind wasn't on the light; he was staring solemnly at a pool of water. In the center of the pool stood a light blue, elegant figure. Its ribbon-like streamers fluttered in the wind, highlighting its graceful posture. A light-blue sapphire was embedded on its forehead, and its ruby-red eyes stared at the two intruders.
"Suicune, the Aurora Pokémon, a Legendary Pokémon. It contains the gentle power of a spring and has the ability to instantly purify dirty water. It is said to be the personification of the North Wind."
The mechanical voice of the Pokédex rang out. Dawn stared at the graceful Suicune, then turned to Ash and asked in surprise, "Ash, it... it's a Legendary Pokémon!"
Before seeing more powerful legendary Pokémon, Dawn was quite surprised by the mysterious Suicune. She was even more surprised than when she saw Mesprit at Lake Verity. This time, she was seeing a legendary with her own eyes, even if Ash considered this legendary to be a lower-tier one.
"Relax, I came here for it!" Ash gently stroked her hair, then slowly put her down. He turned around to face Suicune.
"You... you..." The boy's affectionate head-patting instantly made Dawn's face turn completely red. After a moment, she snapped out of it and realized that Ash was about to convince a legendary Pokémon to join him.
"Suicune, I'm going to catch you!" Ash slowly walked to the edge of the pool, holding Sceptile's Poké Ball. He declared war on Suicune.
"Whoo!" Suicune let out a powerful cry, accepting Ash's challenge. It slowly began to walk forward, and the white ribbons around its neck fluttered in the wind. It then came up to Ash, gave him an elegant nod, and got ready for battle.
"Damn that Goh. He ruined this cool mount." Before that incident, Suicune had always been his favorite mount. But now... it's a matter of personal opinion. Looking at Suicune's lost prestige, he cursed a certain dark-skinned jerk before throwing his Poké Ball.